Category: Recipes

It is going to be really cold in my neck of the woods over the next week. We are looking at highs that will be below 0 degrees, without wind chill. I spent the day busy in the kitchen cooking and baking in attempt to keep the house warm without forcing the furnace to run constantly.

I made scones, brownies, banana bread, lentil soup, cranberry sauce, bread and quiche. The quiche will be tonight’s dinner. I am dreading this evening, I will need to brave the cold and go to a meeting tonight.

Broccoli Cheddar Quiche

2 cups broccoli

6 eggs

3/4 cups whole milk

1 cup cheese (I used cheddar, but you could use any cheese you want)

salt and pepper to taste

pie crust (I use premade, I have yet to be successful making a pie crust)

Preheat oven to 350. Put crust in pie pan. If using fresh broccoli, boil for 4-5 minutes. When broccoli is done, chop. Whisk together eggs and milk. Add cheese and broccoli. Pour in pie pan and bake for 40 minutes or until knife inserted in middle comes out clean.

Artichoke Spinach Dip is the perfect appetizer for a potluck dinner or party. I made it for a surprise birthday party that was given for my daughter over the weekend. This is a favorite dish and was a big hit.

Artichoke Spinach Dip

2 cups grated parmesan cheese, extra for topping

10 oz spinach (if using frozen, drain water)

1 package cream cheese-softened

1 8 oz sour cream

1/3 cup mayonnaise

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix all ingredients together and pour into baking dish. Sprinkle parmesan cheese on top. Bake in oven for 30 minutes or until bubbly.

My daughter’s favorite cake is banana with a peanut butter frosting. I use bananas that are passed their prime, which I keep in the freezer until ready for use. This recipe is really simple and delicious.

Banana Cake

1 stick of softened butter

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

3 bananas

1 cup sour cream

2 tbsp milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In mixer, or large bowl, cream butter and sugar and fluffy. Add the eggs, beating well after adding. Add vanilla. In separate bowl combine the flour, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mix. Add the banana, sour cream and milk.

We get our seafood from Sitka Salmon Shares. It is a CSA for seafood that is available in the Midwest. This company uses sustainable practices and is environmentally friendly. Once a month from May to December we get a box of really good seafood. This year we received salmon, cod, bass, tuna and prawns. We eat it once a week and I think we might have enough left to get us through March. We will be signing up again this year.

Tonight I made Miso Glazed Salmon with rice and sugar snap peas on the side.

Miso Glazed Salmon

1 lb salmon

1/4 cup miso

2 tbsp brown sugar

3 tbsp white wine vinegar

1 tbsp water

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Mix miso, sugar vinegar and water. When oven is 500 degrees, turn the oven down to 200, put the glaze on the salmon and bake.

I cook my seafood in a high temperature oven and then turn down and let the heat cook the fish slowly. It take about 30 minutes, but the fish always turns out perfectly and not overcooked.

I found the perfect recipe for sugar cookies. These are the best sugar cookies that I have ever made, and that I have ever tired. This recipe was also really easy to follow and didn’t take long at all. I made these cookies for a bake sale, but I will definitely be going back to this recipe the next time I make sugar cookies.

I have added a new side dish to my dinner rotation. Baked Creamy Polenta. I purchase the polenta in bulk at my local health food store. It has always been a favorite of mine, but it always seemed daunting cook from scratch. When I made it, I used the premade polenta in the tubes, that always has the texture of rubber. This recipe is a winner and very easy to make.

Baked Creamy Polenta

6 cups water

1 1/2 cups slow cooking polenta

1/4 cup butter (I use Kerrygold)

Parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Bring 6 cups salted water to a boil.. Whisking constantly, slowly add the polenta and reduce heat to medium-low. Whisk often, until polenta is tender. If the polenta becomes thick too soon, add more water and continue cooking. Add butter and ½ cup Parmesan to polenta and stir.

Tonight I scrapped my meal plan of homemade macaroni and cheese and decided on Meatballs instead. It turned out really good and is adapted from a number of recipes I found online.

I used cauliflower rice and turkey meatballs that I had in the freezer (both from Costco).

Meatballs and Mushroom Gravy Over Cauliflower Rice

2 tbsp butter

16 oz white mushrooms

1/4 cup flour

1 quart vegetable broth (I used Penzey’s vegetable base)

8 oz frozen spinach

Premade meatballs

1 lb Frozen Cauliflower Rice

Salt and Pepper to taste

Melt butter in skillet, add mushrooms and saute for 5-6 minutes. Add broth and bring to a boil. Once boiling add flour and whisk until smooth and thickened. Add frozen meatballs and spinach. Serve on cauliflower rice (or regular rice if you prefer).

Since there was an abundance of vegetables in this dish, we had a fruit salad on the side.

We make our own bread in a bread machine that we have had for 22 years. No plastic bags, no additives and it saves us money. Plus, it just tastes better. The recipe below is our recipe for basic white sandwich bread.

Basic White Bread Recipe

1 cup plus 3 tablespoons of water

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons sugar

3 1/4 cup all purpose flour

2 tablespoons vital wheat gluten

2 teaspoons active dry yeast

How to make bread in a bread machine:

Add water and oil into the bread pan. Add salt, sugar. Add flour.

Make a small well on top of flour and make sure it does not reach wet ingredients. Add the gluten and yeast to the well.

I know that the picture above is not the best looking food picture ever, but don’t let that dissuade you from trying my brussels sprouts. We were almost done with dinner and when I thought to take a picture, so this is what was left. As a general rule Brussels sprouts are healthy, these are probably not real great for the heart, but boy are they good.

When I was a kid, I hated these vegetables more than any other. I avoided them like the plague and allowed myself to avoid them until recently. My kids and I were at a restaurant for dinner and these were on the menu. The bacon and blue cheese convinced me that they would be safe to try. I am officially converted, however toxic the recipe may be.

Brussels Sprouts and Bacon

1 pound brussels sprouts

1 pound bacon

blue cheese

The instructions are easy. Cut up the bacon and fry it. Once cooked drain most of the fat. Add the shredded brussels sprouts and fry in the bacon until crispy. Add blue cheese to taste.

We ate these with salmon and quinoa in an effort to cancel out the bad fat.